Brothers in Arms
by boswifedeb
Summary: It's his first week back on the job after taking time off during CJ's pregnancy and Matt is facing a difficult task: finding out who the sniper is who has been killing police officers. Rated T for violence. **This story immediately follows "Winds of Change". ** Not my characters.
1. Chapter 1

**Brothers in Arms**

****This story immediately follows "Winds of Change"****

"**But I'm strong**

**Strong enough to carry him**

**He ain't heavy, he's my brother**

**So on we go." Bobby Scott & Bob Russell**

**CHAPTER 1**

A call came over the radio in the undercover car. "Attention all units: 417K at the William Hartsfeld Elementary School, on the playground, 4736 Independence." Hoyt looked at Matt. "Go ahead." The private eye popped the light on the dash for him while Hoyt hit the switch and radioed his response. When they arrived two minutes later there was one patrol car already there. Matt knew both of the officers: Chris Simpson and Larry Carlisle. Both had their guns drawn and pointed at a man who was holding a knife in one hand and the arm of a little girl about eight years old in the other. Hoyt ran up to the scene, weapon drawn. "Drop the knife, NOW!" The man with the knife appeared to be on drugs. His eyes were wild looking and the fact that he was almost seven feet tall didn't help any either.

Matt knew none of the cops wanted to fire a gun on the crowded playground. He eased over to one of the teachers who was standing wide-eyed and told her to get the kids inside. When she didn't respond, he took her by the arms and shook her. "Take the kids inside, now, understand?" She nodded, turned, and started herding the children toward the school. Matt turned back around. The man had started moving toward the back of the playground, dragging the little girl with him. All three officers kept shouting for him to put the knife down. Instead, he picked up the girl and held her in front of him and walked at an angle toward the fence that enclosed the back of the playground. The officers followed, but didn't dare risk a shot for fear of hitting the girl. Matt edged around behind the man who seemed unaware that he was there. Hoyt did his best not to react to Houston's movements and give him away. As the man neared the fence he moved the girl over and put her on his left hip. Matt was about ten feet away from him. He started running full tilt toward the man and jumped onto his back, maneuvering around and getting his legs locked around the man's chest and his arms around his neck, causing him to loosen his grip on the girl. She ran toward the officers as Matt tucked his head and rolled the man to the ground. He raised the knife up toward Houston, who kicked him in the stomach with the heel of his boot, causing him to drop the knife. Then Matt performed an arm-bar maneuver breaking his arm. Hoyt and the other two officers moved in and cuffed the suspect. The private investigator rolled over and got up off of the ground.

Hoyt holstered his gun and looked at Matt and shook his head. "You really can't help it, can you, PI? Just like a lightning rod." Houston just shrugged his shoulders and walked back toward the car. An ambulance could be heard in the distance. As he leaned against the car he thought about a conversation that he and CJ had a few months earlier. She had said, "Do you ever think about what it would be like without all this excitement? No gun toting, no bad guys. Just peace and quiet?" He had replied, "All the time, CJ, all the time. But we just keep getting dragged into it, don't we?" Matt looked down at his boots. The ambulance arrived and the paramedics went to collect their patient. Three other patrol cars had also arrived on the scene.

Just then he heard a familiar voice. "You know he's gonna make you help with the paperwork now, don't you?" Houston looked up to see Sgt. Larry Carlisle walking toward him smiling broadly. "Why didn't you become a cop, Houston? You would've made a good one."

From behind Carlisle came the lieutenant's voice. "Because he doesn't play by the rules, that's why." Carlisle turned and looked at Hoyt who was actually smiling.

"Quick, Carlisle, take a picture, you may never see that again." Matt zinged Hoyt right back.

"You're a real comedian, aren't you, PI? Well, let's see how much you're laughing while you're helping me fill out the paperwork on this little adventure." Hoyt walked around the front of the car and climbed into the driver's side.

Carlisle punched Matt in the arm. "Told ya so." He kept laughing as he walked back to his patrol car.

As the fifteen year LAPD veteran pulled away from the curb he cut a sideways glance at Houston and grinned. "What?" Matt had seen the look.

"Oh nothing, just thinking." Hoyt chuckled to himself.

"That's what that smell was." Houston smirked.

"Funny, PI, very funny. I was just thinking that your time off didn't leave you rusty." Although he was reluctant to admit it, Hoyt had missed having Houston around to help him. Matt had taken some time off during CJ's pregnancy. He had helped out with a couple of cases in Texas while he was spending time there getting the Houston ranch back up and running cattle again, and had helped Hoyt with one case - one that involved Homeland Security.

"So how is my niece doing?" Hoyt claimed Matt's four week old daughter as his niece, just like his other best friend Vince Novelli.

"She's fat and sassy." Matt grinned. "I've got some pictures I'll show you when we get back to your office." Hoyt rolled his eyes and sighed. "Oh shut up, you did the same thing when Kathy was born I bet."

"True, I did." Kathy was Michael Hoyt's sixteen year old daughter. Hoyt had Matt to thank for her still being alive after she had been kidnapped a few years back. Matt had tracked down the child molester who had taken her and had been stabbed in the chest with a butcher knife by the crazed murderer.

"How do you like having to get up and change diapers and feed Miss Catey Rose in the middle of the night?" Michael Hoyt had a feeling he knew what the answer would be.

"It doesn't bother me at all. She usually only wakes up about 2:00am so it's no big deal."

"You're lucky – Kathy used to wake up every three hours for the first three months. Talk about zombie – Anne and I were both zombies for a while." He grinned thinking back to those days. "Hard to believe she's almost grown."

They pulled into the parking garage of the police station and Matt hit the button for the elevator, then took out his phone and pulled up the pictures of his daughter. "Here ya go, Uncle Michael." He handed it over to his friend.

"Aww, she sure is a cutie. Good thing you married such a beautiful lady – otherwise this child would have been ugly as sin."

"Funny Hoyt." He took back the phone after Michael was done looking at the pictures. "Did you see this one?" Matt held the phone in front of the detective, showing him a picture of his wife CJ holding their daughter.

"She sure looks a lot like her mom." Hoyt grinned over at Matt. "You know, CJ is the best thing that ever happened to you."

"Yep, I just wish I had fessed up to how I felt about her sooner – we could have had several kids running around by now." Matt didn't often talk that way and Hoyt was somewhat surprised.

The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and the two men walked to Hoyt's office where he started in on the paperwork for the knife-wielding druggie and Matt began reading through the case files that he had been coming to look at in the first place. He got about halfway through the information when there was a sudden spike in the noise in the outer office and officers could be seen scrambling. "Hoyt – something's going on." Matt got up and headed out the door, running into Luis Sanchez who was on his way into the lieutenant's office. "What happened?"

Sanchez looked as though he were going to throw up. "Somebody just shot Chris Simpson." Hoyt had overheard the remark.

"No. Where?" He and Matt headed on out the door.

"Alvarado and Seventh – in front of the cleaners."

Matt and Hoyt hit the button for the elevator but it was obviously tied up with a lot of traffic so they hit the stairs running, making it down to the parking garage in just a minute. They hopped into Hoyt's car and took off in the direction of the shooting. Matt turned up the volume on the police radio and they could hear as other officers arrived on the scene. It didn't sound good.

As they pulled up to the scene, traffic was completely shut down. There on the ground in front of the cleaners was Chris Simpson – shot directly through the heart. His partner, Larry Carlisle was kneeling beside the young officer crying. Matt went over to him and knelt down. "Come on, Larry. I know, bud, but you're not going to do him any good like this. Come over here and talk to me." Matt maneuvered him over to his patrol car and opened the door for him so he could sit down.

Larry Carlisle had been a cop for almost twenty years and had told Matt almost a year ago that he was going to retire, but just as the private investigator had figured, he was still on the job. Another officer brought Larry a bottle of water which Matt opened for him and handed it over. With shaking hands, Larry took a swallow and seemed to calm down slightly until he looked back over at his partner – he lost it again. Kneeling in front of the man, Matt patted him on the shoulder. "Larry, come on bud, calm down a little okay?" The officer nodded and was doing his best to calm down. "Talk to me now, tell me exactly what happened."

"There was a complaint called in – 415 – a disturbance." He took a shaky breath. "I just put it in park and he stepped out of the car and POW!" The officer looked like he was in shock. "He fell right there. Houston, they shot him right through the heart!" He lost it again. Matt patted him on the shoulder.

"Did you see anybody, Larry? Come on, if we're gonna catch this bastard you've gotta talk to me." Matt grabbed the man by both shoulders. "Larry, do it for Chris, come on. Now did you see anybody or could you tell which direction the shot came from?"

He shook his head no. "Just a shot and he was gone."

Hoyt walked over, looking more upset than Matt could ever remember. "What did you get?"

Matt stood up and leaned against the patrol car. "He put the car in park, Chris got out to check on the 415 call they had, and …" He motioned toward the body of the young officer.

"Did he see the shooter?" Hoyt was looking all around the area.

"No, didn't see anybody and doesn't know which direction it came from." He walked over to the body and knelt down, looking at the wound. Hoyt was talking to Carlisle. From what Matt could tell the shot had come from a distance – and it was a clean shot. Simpson had never even known what hit him.

Another officer walked up just then, grabbing Matt by the arm and jerked him away from the body. "What in the hell do you think you're doing?! Get the hell out of the crime scene!" He pushed Matt backwards causing him to hit the hood of Larry's patrol car. Hoyt stepped between the two men as Matt regained his feet and started back toward the officer.

"Hold it! He's with us, Jenkins! Back off! He's one of us!" Hoyt pushed the patrolman back away from Matt and had his hand against the private investigator's chest.

Larry Carlisle sprung out of the car and launched himself at Jenkins. "You dumb bastard! Leave him alone!" He dissolved into tears again as Matt and Hoyt helped him up to his feet and over to the back of a waiting ambulance. Four other officers helped Jenkins to his feet. One of them, Tom Harker, took the man aside. "Look, he's a PI but he helps us out a lot – and I do mean a LOT. He's a good guy, okay?"

Jenkins straightened his uniform and glared at Harker and then Houston. "He's a civilian – he shouldn't even be on this crime scene!"

Harker pointed to Matt. "I tell you what – if anybody can figure out who shot Simpson, it will be that man right there. He's the best there is. If you don't believe me, ask around. Now leave him the hell alone."

The ambulance took off with Carlisle inside and Matt with him. He had completely broken down once he got inside. Hoyt went back and started working the scene with Cheryl Crawford, one of the CSI techs who had been called out. "Was that Houston in there with Carlisle?" She had her camera out and was about to start taking photos of the scene.

Hoyt nodded. "Yeah, Carlisle grabbed hold of his hand and wouldn't let go for anything…" Hoyt looked as though he himself wanted to cry.

"You okay?" Cheryl put a hand on his shoulder.

"No, not really. Simpson's dad was my first partner – my FTO when I joined up. He had a stroke a couple of years ago. This may well be the end of him."


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

"Hey Chris, is Uncle Roy there?" Matt was standing in the hallway of the emergency room. Larry Carlisle was in one of the exam rooms and had just been sedated. Matt had ended up being drug into the exam room because the cop would not turn loose of his hand until the valium that they gave him kicked in.

"Sure is – hey, are you okay?" Something in Matt's voice told her that something bad had happened.

"Not really – Chris Simpson just got killed." He leaned against the wall as he talked to his secretary.

"Oh no, he was really sweet. I'll get Roy, hang on." She stepped into the office and found Matt's uncle sitting at the bar going over the bid for a security system that he had been working on. "Roy – Houston's on line one."

"Okay, thanks Chris." The older man picked up the phone and punched the button. "Yeah, Matt, what's up?"

"Chris Simpson just got shot and killed. It was a through and through – right in the heart."

"Oh, my God. Where did it happen?"

"In front of the cleaners at Alvarado and Seventh. Could you come pick me up at the hospital? I rode in with Larry – he is completely torn up."

"Sure thing, Matt, I'll be right there." He hung up the phone and went into the outer office to catch the elevator. "Chris, I've got to go pick Matt up. Be back in a little while."

"Alright, I'll cover things here."

Matt was waiting outside the emergency room when Roy pulled up in his car. "Where do you want me to take you?"

"Back to the office if you would. I need to get my truck. Sorry to bother you." He knew Roy had been working on the security system for a chain of jewelry stores and it was a big job.

"No problem. I just hate the reason for my being here. He was a nice guy. How's Larry?"

"Knocked out at the moment. He completely lost it, Uncle Roy. And I can't say as I blame him." Matt pulled out his phone and called Hoyt. "Hey, did you get anything else?"

Hoyt sat down in his car. "No, I haven't. But it looks to me like it came from a distance."

"Yeah it did. Look, has anybody checked out the roof tops around there? From what I could see of the wound it looked like a downward trajectory."

"Not yet, but I'll get started on it. Where are you?" He watched as the ME pulled away with the body of the young officer, headed to the morgue.

"I'm on the way to get my truck. I'll be there ASAP."

"Okay, thanks. By the way, I'm sorry about what Jenkins did."

"It's not your place to apologize for him, Hoyt. Don't worry about it – we need to concentrate on Simpson's killer right now. I'll be there in a few minutes." He hung up and put his phone back in his shirt pocket.

Roy pulled into the parking garage and Matt got out headed for his truck. "Do you need me to go with you?"

Matt stopped and thought for a minute. "No, you go ahead with the security deal. Thanks, though." He got in his truck and took off to the crime scene. On the way over, he went through what little they had. If the shooter had been on a roof top, they might be able to find some evidence – if he didn't police his brass or if he was careless and left something else behind. But it was a perfectly placed shot and Matt had a feeling that whoever did it wasn't an amateur.

Once he arrived, traffic had been opened up and there were fewer police vehicles there. He pulled into the parking lot of an electronics store and walked back up the street toward the scene where he could see Cheryl Crawford still working. "I'm glad it's you here, Cheryl." Matt knew that she was about the best tech that the LAPD had, and was a very conscientious worker.

"Thanks, Houston. I just wish I wasn't here for this reason. Chris was a sweet guy. He was supposed to be getting married in a couple of weeks."

"Damn." Matt looked around. There really wasn't much to work with and he looked up at the rooftops. "It looked to me like the shot came from above, what did you think?"

Cheryl nodded. "That's it exactly. He was headed into the cleaners here," she pointed to the door of the business, "so he was walking this way." She gestured with her hand. "It looked to me like it came from the back. Lousy coward."

Matt nodded. "That's what I thought; his chest looked more like an exit wound. Have you found the bullet yet?"

"Yep." She waved him over to her van. "Here it is." She raised an evidence bag so Matt could see it. "It hit the wall over there." Cheryl pointed to an area of the front wall of the cleaners that had a chalk ring drawn around it.

"So most likely it came from the other side of the street." Matt looked across at the buildings and then back at the bullet. "A Kate – 308, right?"

"Yes. An M-24." She looked at Matt.

"That's what I was afraid of." The only people who were supposed to have access to such a weapon were law enforcement and the military. "Thanks, Cheryl." He turned and started away.

"Hey, how's that baby doing?" She gave Matt a big smile. "Got any pictures on you?"

"She's great." Matt walked back over and pulled out his phone and pulled up the picture of Catey Rose and CJ.

"Aww, that's so sweet. You know, it helps to look at something like this after dealing with something like this." She waved toward the crime scene.

"Yep, now I've got a whole other reason for why I do what I do." Matt put the phone back up and headed across the street. Once he made it to the back of the building directly across he ran into Hoyt.

"The business here is closed down and I haven't been able to get up on the roof." Hoyt looked like he was ready to bite nails.

"Okay, be right back." Matt trotted back across the street and brought his truck around behind the building. He got out and looked up at the roof. There was a piece of what appeared to be iron pipe sticking up on the back of the roof. Opening the tool box in the bed of the truck, Matt removed a rope and began making a lasso.

"What in the hell are you doing?" Hoyt looked at him as if he had lost his mind.

"Going up." Matt stepped up into the bed of the truck and proceeded to lasso the pipe. He got it on the first try.

"I'll be damned – guess those cowboy skills come in handy at times." Hoyt shook his head.

"Mountain climbing, too." He gave the tired-looking detective a smile and then began climbing up the side of the building. Hoyt never ceased to be amazed by the private investigator. It was easy to forget that he had spent time in Army Special Forces – he just didn't seem like the type.

"I've got a truck from the fire department on the way." He had hoped they would have been there sooner.

"Okay." Matt had just made it to the top of the wall and was swinging the lower half of his body over onto the roof. He looked down at Hoyt. "You wanna use the rope?"

"Uh no, I'll wait for a ladder."

"Suit yourself." The top of the roof was graveled – not what Matt had been hoping for. Although it wasn't extremely warm weather yet, a roof with tar on it might have given them a footprint to work with. He looked carefully before stepping anywhere and slowly worked his way across to the front of the building. Looking over toward the dry cleaners building across the street, Matt figured the approximate location of the shooter – or what he thought might have been the location. It was entirely possible that the person had been on another roof. He looked down and noticed that the gravel had been disturbed and he could see marks on the sheet metal edging of the roof. They looked like marks left from a bipod, used to steady a rifle. There was no shell casing lying around, but he hadn't really expected to find one. Most people who would shoot at someone in such a manner had enough experience to pick up their own brass. There was nothing else there. He walked back over to the edge of the roof as the fire truck pulled up. "I think I found bipod marks, Michael." Hoyt hung his head.

"Okay, I'll be right up." He watched as Matt continued to scour the roof for clues as the firemen set up the ladder for him. Within a minute he was up on the roof with the private investigator.

"It's over here." Matt walked him to the front of the roof and showed him the gravel and the marks.

"I'd say you're right." He looked over the front of the roof. Cheryl was still across the street and Hoyt pulled out his phone and called her to let her know what Matt had found. He hung up and followed after his friend as he continued to search the roof. "She'll be up here in a minute."

Matt nodded. "I don't see anything else, but I'd be willing to bet that's it right there. It would be the easiest place to fire from." Hoyt nodded. Matt turned and watched him. "Has the family been notified yet?"

"Yeah. His dad took it hard." He looked down at his shoes. "I've got to catch the guy that did this, Houston. I've got to."

"I know, bud. We'll get him. I promise." Matt patted the veteran detective on the shoulder.

Hoyt looked at the man that was his best friend and knew that he would: Houston never made a promise he couldn't keep.


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

When Matt got back to the ranch that evening, CJ already knew what had happened. Their secretary Chris had called to let her know and she had been watching the coverage of it on the news. When he walked in the kitchen door, Matt went straight to her and pulled her into a big hug. "I heard about Chris Simpson." She pulled back from him and looked at his face. "How's Larry?"

Matt shook his head. "When I left him at the emergency room they had just given him valium to knock him out – he's all torn up." He walked over to the fridge and opened it, thinking about a beer, but changed his mind. If he got called back out by Hoyt tonight or for some other reason that wouldn't be good. Pulling out the pitcher of lemonade, he grabbed a glass from the cabinet and poured some.

CJ put the pitcher back in the fridge for him and walked up behind him as he stared out the kitchen window. She wrapped her arms around his waist. "You know, I can remember a time not too long ago when you would have popped the top on a beer and not worried about it." She smiled.

"Yeah, well I'm an old married man with a kid now, I've gotta be a little more responsible these days." He turned to face her, bringing her face up to his and gently kissing her. "How are my ladies doing?"

"Just fine – except we sure did miss you today." She had gotten used to him being home all the time. It was his first week back at work and it still seemed odd with him gone. As he started to kiss her again, he heard his daughter starting to fuss.

"Guess who's awake." He smiled down at CJ. "I'll get her. I kinda missed the little booger today." He walked on back through the house as his wife watched him. She could hear him when he went in to get the baby from her crib – the baby monitor was in the kitchen.

"Who's in here doing all that fussin'?" Matt reached down for his four week old daughter. "Uh huh, somebody has wet drawers. Now how did that happen? Huh?" The baby quit fussing as he picked her up and took her to the changing table. CJ was listening to the two of them, Matt talking to the baby just as if she understood every word he said, and Catey Rose cooing back at him in response. Maybe she really did understand. He talked to her the entire time he was changing her and then brought her back into the kitchen where CJ was getting her bottle ready. "And look, Mama's already got that bottle set up for you. I think you might just be a little bit spoiled." He took the bottle from CJ and walked into the den with Catey, sitting down in his recliner and kicking off his boots. As he started feeding her, CJ came in and sat down with them.

After all his years as a bachelor, Matt had settled right into life as a married man and not too much later as a father. He seemed to enjoy taking care of the baby and none of the dirty diapers or crying seemed to ruffle his feathers at all, although Catey didn't fuss too much when Daddy was around. He would speak calmly to her and in seconds she would quit crying.

"I guess all those years spent working with horses have paid off." She grinned as Matt looked over at her, slightly puzzled.

"Huh?"

"You talk to her just like you do to Cricket." Cricket was Matt's favorite horse that was spoiled; she would fuss down at the barn in the evenings until he went down to pay attention to her.

"Oh, well, I guess both of 'em are babies in a way." He grinned. "This kid can really put away the groceries."

They talked on for a while as Catey drank her bottle then Matt put her up on his shoulder to burp her. "Alright kiddo, make your old man proud. Do a good 'un." He gently patted her on the back and in a couple of minutes was rewarded with a huge burp. "Yep, that's my kid alright." He and CJ both cracked up.

"I know somebody else who would probably like some supper. Think you can handle some stew?" CJ got up and headed toward the kitchen followed by Matt.

"You know it." He brought the baby into the kitchen and put her in the carrier that was sitting there. After a couple of minutes of being rocked with her dad's foot, Catey was dozing back off. Matt watched her as he ate and looked over at CJ. "So when are we going to get another one?"

She was taken by surprise. "Another what?" Matt motioned toward the baby. "Well goodness, Matt, she's only four weeks old!" CJ started laughing.

"Yeah, but we've got a lot of time to make up for, ya know." He reached over and took her hand.

"Well, we've gotta have just a little space in between you know." She shook her head at him.

"Maybe we should try for twins next time; that would bump up the production process." He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"And how do you…never mind, I don't think I want to know." CJ laughed again at the devilish sparkle in his eyes.

After supper, Matt pulled his boots back on and walked down to the barn to check the horses. Bo and Lamar, his two ranch hands were playing horseshoes out in front. "Who's winning?" Matt stopped to watch the game.

"Me of course." Lamar grinned as Bo shot him a dirty look. "Wanna try your luck against the champ?"

"No, just came down to check on the horses." Matt yawned and stretched as he headed on down to the pasture.

"I heard about what happened to that young cop. Darn shame." Lamar walked along with him to the fence.

"Yeah, he was supposed to be getting married in a couple of weeks. His dad was Hoyt's FTO when he was a rookie." Matt climbed up and sat on the top rail of the fence.

"What's an FTO?" Bo leaned against the fence.

"Field Training Officer. They teach you the ropes once you get out on patrol." Cricket trotted up to Matt and began nuzzling at him. "How's my girl today, huh?" He reached out and scratched the horse on her jaw and neck, just as she wanted. Then she turned sideways in front of him so that he could climb on and the two of them went for a ride around the pasture. When they got back up to the fence she held still so Matt could sit back on the top rail. He swatted her on the rump and she took off running across the pasture.

"That horse is just pure old rotten." Bo laughed as he watched her kick up her heels.

"Speakin' of rotten, your daughter paid us a visit today." Lamar looked up at Matt and could see his proud smile.

"She did, huh?" He turned to face his two helpers.

"Yep. And guess who was holding her when she loaded up a diaper?" Lamar looked over at Bo, who made a face.

"That's my girl." Matt climbed back down. As he headed back up to the house, the two cowboys watched him go.

"You know, he's changed a lot, but in a good way." Bo watched as his boss went back into the house.

"Yep, his daddy would be awful proud. Ready to get beat again?" Lamar walked back over and began picking up the horseshoes.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

2:27 am. _What in the hell is that noise?_ Matt finally woke up enough to figure out it was the phone. "Houston."

"Hey, it's Hoyt. You're not going to believe this but we've got another officer down." He sounded like he had never even made it to bed.

"Oh, hell. Where?" Matt sat up on the side of the bed and turned on the lamp.

"329 South Rampart - in front of an apartment building." Hoyt was kneeling beside the body of another dead police officer.

"I'll be there quick as I can." He hung up and headed for the closet, pulling out jeans and a denim shirt, then heading to the chest and pulling out a pair of socks. Sitting back down on the side of the bed, he looked at the clock again, then over at CJ. "Did Catey wake you up yet?"

"No, what about you?" She was raised up on her right elbow.

"No." Matt pulled on his socks and jeans, slid his feet into his boots and headed to the next room to check on her. She was sleeping soundly. CJ was almost to the door when he came back in smiling. "She's snoozing away." He put on his shirt and pulled his pistol out of the drawer of the bedside table, checked to be sure it had a full load and then kissed CJ. "Love you, Babe."

"Be careful, Matt." She watched him go then turned off the lamp and lay back down.

As he made his way into the city, Matt thought about what was going on: two police officers shot down in less than twenty four hours. He didn't know who the second victim was but the first thing that came to mind was to check and see if the two men who had died had anything else in common besides the fact that they were cops. Matt pulled up as close to the scene as he could get: about three blocks down. As he walked up the sidewalk he checked the surrounding buildings. It was an area made up mostly of apartment buildings. Drawing closer he could see Michael Hoyt standing near the body of the fallen officer. The detective looked up and saw Matt as he reached the crime scene tape. A very young officer with his hand on the butt of his pistol held up a hand to Matt. "Mathis, he's with me." The officer nodded and raised the tape for Matt who thanked him. He walked over to Hoyt. "Who is it?"

"Sergeant Tim Clark, ten years on the job." He shone a flashlight down on the wound of the officer: it was identical to the one that Chris Simpson had received.

"Looks exactly the same." Matt knelt down and took a closer look. "What was he doing when it happened?"

"They had a call for a suspicious person that was supposedly loitering in front of the building here." Hoyt indicated the apartment building that the officer had fallen in front of.

"Do we know who called it in?" Matt stood back up and looked up at the apartments. A few of the residents were standing in windows or on the balconies looking down at the scene.

"Anonymous - just like this afternoon." Hoyt had already checked into that earlier.

"Can I borrow your light?" Matt knelt back down to study the wound. "It looks like a steeper angle than the one this afternoon." He looked at the apartment building across the street and noticed that it was taller than the building that he had been on the previous afternoon. "I bet we have to go inside to get to that roof."

"I'll bet you're right. Let's go." The pair started across the street and went into the building, knocking on the door of the superintendent. It was answered by a woman in her mid-sixties with rollers in her hair – and a .357 in her shaking hand. Hoyt flashed the badge and she put the gun back down at her side. "Ma'am, we need to get up on the roof."

"Why in the hell would you need to do that? The dead body is on the sidewalk across the street!" She didn't seem to be very cheerful at 3:00 am.

"Yes ma'am, he is, but we believe the shot may have come from your roof and we would sure appreciate your help." Matt turned on the charm and the lady relented.

"Well give a girl a chance to put her robe on."

"Yes ma'am, we'll be right here." Matt stepped back and took a good look around the hallway. Nothing appeared out of place.

"You have a way with older ladies, that's for sure." Hoyt looked at his friend.

"If you'll recall, I used to be pretty good with the younger ones, too." Matt wiggled his eyebrows, causing Hoyt to grin and shake his head. "Speaking of younger ones, guess who didn't wake up at 2:00 am?"

"Really? She's doing good." Hoyt had a feeling that Catey Rose was going to be a laid-back kind of baby.

"I talked to Bo and Lamar tonight. She loaded up a diaper while Bo was holding her this afternoon." He cracked up as did Hoyt.

"I really shouldn't laugh – I'll probably be next." Hoyt smiled over at Matt. "You're really getting into this dad thing, huh?"

"Yep, love it." He walked up the hall a little ways – something had caught his eye. Hoyt followed. "Hey, look at this." Matt pointed out a spot on the wall that looked like it had recently been hit by something – possibly metal. A chunk of plaster had been knocked out about the size of a dime.

"Very interesting." It was on the corner of the wall right next to the elevator. The super walked out of her apartment just then and was making her way up the hall.

"Ma'am, would you happen to know if this wall was like this earlier?" Matt pointed out the spot to her.

"No, I don't think so. I had to go up to 3-B earlier and I didn't notice it." She reached out to touch it.

"No ma'am; please don't touch it." Hoyt held up his hand to block her. She looked shocked.

"Do you think it could have something to do with-…?" She pointed across the street.

"It might." Hoyt pulled out his phone and called for one of the CSI techs to come over and process it. Charlie Mason showed up in a minute and started work on it as Hoyt and Matt headed up to the roof with the super.

"We're sorry to bother you like this in the middle of the night." Matt looked down at the short lady.

"Well, if it will help that poor man out there, it's okay." She patted him on the arm. The elevator stopped and they got out and walked up to the end of the hall. As she was looking down for the key that unlocked the door to the roof, Matt let out a whistle.

"I don't think we'll be needing that key after all, ma'am." He pointed to the door where the lock had been completely disassembled and left hanging.

"Oh my goodness!" She looked panic stricken. "You mean somebody really did do that here?"

Matt pulled the pistol out of the waistband of his jeans. "Ma'am, go on back downstairs and lock your door please." He didn't have to say it twice – she took off at a trot headed for the elevator.

He and Hoyt looked at each other, both took a deep breath and Matt nudged the door slowly open with the toe of his boot. They both snuck glances outside but didn't see anyone. Slowly they worked their way out onto the roof and, with their backs to each other, cleared the roof.

"All clear over here." Matt waited until Hoyt gave him the all clear before he lowered his weapon. They approached the front of the roof. "When in the hell did they stop using tar on roofs?" Matt was sure hoping that this one had tar on it.

"I don't know, but I was sure hopeful that it would be." Hoyt sighed. They were both looking down at the roof in the beam from Michael's flashlight. The roof was metal painted white. They got almost to the front edge and Matt pointed. There was a black smudge just in front of the raised edge of the roof. Hoyt pulled out his phone and called Charlie to come up and process the area. When Matt got a little closer he saw two marks identical to the ones that he had found that afternoon – marks where a bipod had most likely been used to steady the rifle. He pointed them out to Hoyt.

"Damn it!" He looked around. "How in the hell are we supposed to catch this guy? How many more officers have to die before we catch this …" He stopped right there.

"Calm down, Hoyt. It won't help anything." Matt put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "We've got to stay calm and think this through – otherwise we won't be able to catch him, right?" Hoyt nodded. He was too upset to try to speak.

Charlie Mason made his way up to the roof and peeked around the edge of the door way. "We're over here." He cautiously made his way across.

"Did you two do that to the door down there or do I need to process that as well?" He seemed a little frightened.

"Process it." Matt had turned back around and was looking at the edge of the roof. "Hoyt let me see your light." He took it and shone it where the bipod marks were. "Hey, I think the bipod is what hit the wall downstairs. Look at the white right here in this little dip." Hoyt and Charlie both looked.

"You're right. So he hit the wall on the way up." Hoyt looked around the roof top a little more. "Hey, Charlie. Here – get a picture of this." He pointed out a gum wrapper. The tech shot a couple of pictures. "Maybe we can get a print off of it."

"Good find, Michael." Matt looked around in the other direction and didn't see anything. He and Hoyt left and went back down to talk to the super. She answered the door once again holding the pistol but put it down as soon as she saw who it was. After being invited inside for coffee, Matt and Hoyt sat down in the living room and asked her about her tenants.

"Well most of 'em are older folks, but we've got about four young couples. I really don't think any of them would do anything like that though." She motioned toward the crime scene across the street.

"Yes ma'am. Could you give us a list?" Matt seriously doubted if any of them were the murderers but maybe they had at least heard or seen something that would help.

"Sure." She got up and went to a computer that was on a desk in the corner. After a couple of unsuccessful tries to print the list she turned and looked at Matt. "My daughter usually handles this machine but I bet you know how to do it."

He smiled at her. "Yes ma'am." After making sure that the printer was turned on and that there was paper in it, he clicked the mouse and in just a couple of seconds it began printing.

"How long have you been a policeman, young man?" She looked up at Matt.

"Well ma'am, I'm not. I'm a private investigator that consults with the department when they need a little extra help."

"My stars – just like Bogie, huh?"

"Well, maybe a little bit." Matt blushed slightly.

"And I see you've got a wedding ring on." She looked at Hoyt and winked. "Like they say, all the good ones are taken."

"Yes ma'am, he's really taken. Show her the picture, Matt."

Grinning, Matt pulled out his phone and showed her the picture of CJ and Catey Rose. "Oh my goodness! They're both beautiful. How old is the baby?"

"She's four weeks." Matt couldn't help but smile with pride.

"And here you are out in the middle of the night having to deal with something like this. And that poor man over there…" She didn't finish the sentence.

Hoyt explained that the crime scene tech was processing the rooftop and the broken door. "So please don't shoot him, okay?"

She grinned somewhat sheepishly. "I always take my gun to the door – I'm too short to see out the peephole."


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

Matt went to the office when he and Hoyt had finished up at the apartment building. Since most of the tenants had been awake anyway (except for an elderly couple who both had their hearing aids turned off) the two detectives had interviewed everyone before 4:30 am.

Before stretching out on the couch, Matt set the alarm on his phone for 7:30. As he drifted off to sleep, he kept thinking about the two officers who had been shot. When he got up, he planned to do a little research on them.

When Matt shut off the alarm, he looked up to see his two favorite girls. CJ and Catey Rose had come to bring him some breakfast. It was Catey's first time at the office and as he ate the sausage and biscuits that CJ had made for him, he talked to his daughter. When Chris showed up just before 8:00, she was surprised to find the Houston family there. "Hi Catey! Wow, you're getting bigger quick." She was holding Matt and CJ's daughter. "It's amazing how fast they grow. I saw her about two weeks ago and now – wow!" She started walking around the office with the baby who seemed to be enjoying the fact that there was another person holding and talking to her. But in a couple of minutes, she started fussing and Chris brought her back to CJ. She continued to fuss and Matt held out his hands and his wife put the baby into them. The minute he brought her up to his chest she quit fussing. Chris and CJ exchanged a look while Matt calmly began talking to his daughter.

"So when are you coming back to work?" Chris and CJ were getting a cup of coffee while Matt took his daughter out on the patio and walked around with her.

"In about two weeks. I'm really going to be glad to get back. I've missed all the hustle and bustle." She turned on the barstool and looked out as Matt and Catey took a tour of the patio.

"He really is good with her." Chris watched as her boss smiled and talked to his daughter.

"I told him last night that it was because of all of his years of working with horses. He talks to her just like he does to Cricket." CJ rolled her eyes and both women laughed. "But he's sure crazy about her and she's just as crazy about him."

"Which one – the baby or the horse?" Chris smiled over at the new mother.

"Both!" They cracked up just as Matt walked back inside with the baby.

"So don't tell your mom, okay? It'll be our little secret." He grinned up at CJ.

"Oh, don't tell me you two are keeping secrets from me already?" She kissed Matt as he handed the baby back to her.

"It's a surprise, Babe; don't get your knickers in a knot." He headed back over to the couch and brought up BABY, the computer used in his investigations and began doing research on the two slain officers.

CJ walked over and sat down by him for a minute. "I guess we'll go back to the house now. You be careful today, okay?" She and Matt kissed as Catey Rose watched the two of them.

"Yes ma'am, I promise." He kissed his wife again, then gave Catey a kiss on the forehead. "I'll call you later, Babe."

"Alright, love you." She gave him another kiss.

"Love you too, Babe." He watched as his ladies headed on back out of the office and then he returned his attention to the job. In about an hour he didn't feel like he had gotten any further at all. From what he could tell, the two officers didn't have any connection other than the fact that they were cops. He got up and went to the bar for another cup of coffee and picked up the phone to call Hoyt.

"Hey, have you gotten anything else?" Matt took a sip.

"No, nothing besides a headache and an upset stomach." Hoyt reached for the antacids that were always in his pocket.

"I've been digging on Simpson and Clark and came up empty." Neither man said anything for a minute. "This waiting around for someone else to get hurt pisses me off."

Hoyt leaned back in his desk chair. "Yeah, that's what I was just thinking."

"The only people who are supposed to have access to these sniper rifles are cops and the military."

"So what are you saying?" Hoyt sat back up.

"I'm not really, I'm just kinda thinking out loud." Matt detected a tone of anger in his friend's voice.

"I hope you're not saying it's a cop doing this." Hoyt felt his blood begin to boil.

"I didn't say that."

"No - but you were thinking it, weren't you?"

"Maybe we should check to see if the department or the Army or whoever has any missing. You know, there are a lot of civilian employees in both – and sometimes folks have sticky fingers." He paused for a moment and could feel the anger coming through the phone line. "Hoyt, I'm just trying to figure it out. And you know what? Folks have been known to make their own guns – especially guns like a sniper rifle that are hard to come by. It really isn't that hard to do." Matt really didn't want to get into it with Hoyt, but he was thinking that it was a possibility that a cop was the shooter.

"You're right." Michael calmed back down. "Look, I'm sorry. It's just bad enough that this is happening without someone blaming it on another cop."

"No problem." Neither one said anything for a minute. "Look I'm going to head your way. We can work on the deal together, okay?"

"Yeah, see you in a little bit." Michael hung up the phone. Maybe he was too sensitive – or maybe Matt had just voiced what he himself had been afraid to – that it could be another cop doing the murders.

When Matt showed up, he brought eight dozen donuts with him. But instead of going in through the lobby like he normally would have, he hit the stairwell and went straight up to the fourth floor where he left seven dozen for the cops in Hoyt's outer office and brought one box into the detective's office.

"Is this a peace offering?" Hoyt moved the stack of folders on the front of his desk so Matt could set the box down.

"Not exactly." The private investigator went and got two cups of coffee and brought them back in, handing one to Michael and sipping the other himself as he sat down. "Want to know how I did it?"

"How you did what?" Michael had already taken a bite out of his first donut.

"How I managed to get eight dozen donuts up to the fourth floor without losing any."

"EIGHT DOZEN?! Why in the hell did you get that many?"

"To prove a point, Michael. Do you see a visitor's pass on my shirt?"

"No, but you're in and out of here all the time…" He stopped and thought about it.

"Uh huh, just like a civilian employee. I came up the stairs from the parking garage. Nobody stopped me, but that's because I'm here a lot and most of them know me." He reached for a donut and took a bite.

"Okay, you proved your point." Hoyt took a bite and looked across the desk. "We all get used to routine and you don't really think about it. We get complacent."

"Exactly. And you didn't check to see if I had a visitor's pass either." He grinned at Hoyt. "I can remember a time you would have held me at gunpoint without one."

Hoyt leaned back in his chair and smiled at the private investigator. "Okay, I'm guilty just like the rest of those guys and ladies out there." He picked up another donut. "God I hate it when you're right. Reminds me of a conversation Vince and I had about you when you were in the hospital."

Matt grinned and took another bite of donut. "Now, when you get done stuffing your face with donuts, cop, we need to get started. The official inquiry will have to come from you. 'Cause I'm just a lowly PI."

"Shut up." Hoyt looked at Matt and shook his head. "You'd hate to be a smart ass."

"Better than a dumb one any day." Matt took another swallow of coffee.

After eating another donut, Hoyt made a call to a friend of his that was in charge of the firing range and asked if they had any sniper rifles missing. Without even checking to be sure, he told Hoyt no.

"Look Freddie, I'm not being a jerk here, but actually go lay eyes on the equipment and check, would you?"

"Oh alright. What in the hell's got a wild hair up your….DAMN IT!" Freddie couldn't believe his eyes. "How did you know?"

"So there is one missing?" Hoyt looked over at Matt. Even though it had been his idea, the private investigator seemed somewhat surprised himself.

"Yes, there is. Look is this some kind of trick you're playing? Because if it is…oh my God. The two cops that were shot…" Freddie stopped mid-sentence.

"That's what we're thinking. Can you send me the ballistics information on that rifle?"

"Yeah, I'll have it there in just a couple of minutes. Damn." He hung up.

"Okay, you were right. Now we'll get the information down to Cheryl and see if the bullets match up. Good thing they keep the information on the rifles."

Matt nodded. "It still doesn't mean it's a cop. It could be a civilian employee."

"I know." Michael walked over to the window. "It's bad enough that any John Doe walking down the street would shoot a cop, but if it's one of our own…" He didn't finish. Luis Sanchez walked into the office with the information from Freddie. "Thanks, Sanchez. Are you ready?" He and Matt took off for Cheryl Crawford's lab.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

"Where did you two get this?" Cheryl was absolutely amazed that they had found the match to the slugs.

"From the firing range – the rifle that was used in the shootings is missing." Hoyt looked at the CSI tech.

"Oh my God – you mean one of our own people…" She looked ready to cry.

"Not necessarily. Think about it: there are a lot of civilian employees around here, too." Matt put a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, but…it could be one of our people, Houston! That's just…" She turned away from both of them and went back to her computer. Both Matt and Hoyt heard a sniffle, then she squared her shoulders. "This is definitely a match. Now to figure out who did it…?"

"Look, do us a favor: keep this under your hat for right now, okay?" Matt stepped forward. "We don't want to tip our hand. If they know that we know, they might ditch it somewhere and we might never catch them."

"Yeah, he's right, Cheryl. Don't tell anybody – and I do mean anybody. Got it?" Hoyt placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Go catch whoever did this, Michael." She had tears glistening in her eyes and Hoyt patted her on the shoulder and he and Matt walked out.

As they walked back towards Hoyt's office his cell phone rang. "Yeah Sanchez, what is it? Where? Okay." He disconnected the call and looked at Matt. "We've got another one. Wilshire and Hope in front of the Bank Ten Building."

"I'll take my truck and meet you there." Matt headed straight for his truck in the parking garage, and when he got to it, he took a minute to put on his bullet proof vest. Wilshire and Hope was right in the middle of a bunch of sky scrapers. It could take a while to figure out which rooftop the shooter had been on…or was still on. Matt didn't know why, but he just had a feeling that the shooter might just start hanging around the crime scenes. After getting his vest on as well as his utility belt with holster, he jumped in the crew cab and headed for the scene.

When he got there, Matt saw the patrolman on the sidewalk right in front of the bank. He got out and ran up to the scene. Frank Rollins, a cop that Matt had known about as long as he had Larry Carlisle was there, kneeling next to the body of his partner. There were several other patrol cars there and officers were beginning to put up the familiar yellow crime scene tape. Hoyt came running up right after Matt did.

Hoyt looked somewhat surprised when he saw Matt wearing the vest. "Do you know something I don't?" They walked together toward the fallen officer.

"No, it's just…I don't know, Hoyt, a feeling." He looked up toward the tops of the massive buildings and thought that he saw a flash of something on the roof of the building directly across. He took off running across the street, grateful that the traffic had been closed down. Hoyt took off after him.

Running into the lobby of the office building, Matt hit the elevator button and was joined by Hoyt as he stepped inside. They rode up to the top in silence. Going down the corridor, Matt spied the roof access and headed right for it, his weapon drawn. Hoyt followed suit and they eased their way out onto the roof. As he turned left, Matt caught a glimpse of someone and crouched down, holding out his hand to stop Hoyt. He pointed in the direction that he had been looking. Matt pointed at himself and the same direction and then pointed at Hoyt and the opposite direction. The lieutenant nodded and they both proceeded carefully toward the side of the roof closest to the fallen officer.

As he reached the end of the air conditioning units, Matt was very aware of the noise coming from them. He would be lucky to hear Hoyt yell if he called out to him. Very slowly, he worked his way around the edge and once again, caught a glimpse of someone on the front of the building's roof. Hoyt had just made it around and spied the man as well. They both headed toward him and carefully, thanks to the noise of the air conditioning units, managed to get within six feet of him. The man was dressed all in black including a ski mask and was holding a rifle in his hands. Matt noticed immediately that it wasn't a sniper rifle, but merely a .30-30 hunting rifle. Not wanting to take a chance on the man turning and firing, Matt snuck right up behind him and stuck his pistol to the back of the man's head. "DROP IT NOW!" The man turned his head and saw Hoyt and put the rifle down.

Hoyt tossed his cuffs to Matt, who none too gently grabbed the man by his left arm and slung him down on the roof, kneeling down with his knee in the small of the man's back and cuffed him. He then began searching his pockets and found extra ammunition and the man's wallet. "Well, Jeffrey Blackmon, what are you doing up here?"

"I ain't sayin' nothin'." Blackmon turned his head and looked at Matt.

"Guess what? You just did." He rolled the man over and stared down at him as Hoyt called for a CSI to come secure the scene on the roof.

"So Jeffrey, what's the big idea?" Matt looked down at the man, squinting into the sun. The suspect didn't say another word. "Come on now, you're such a big man up here taking pot shots at people – guess that's because you don't have the guts to do it face to face, huh?"

"I want a lawyer." Blackmon smiled up at the pair and Hoyt started after him but Matt held him back. Walking a couple of feet away, he whispered in Hoyt's ear. "He's a copycat. That's not a sniper rifle."

Hoyt looked over at the hunting rifle and looked even madder than he had been. He started back toward the suspect and Matt got in between them again. "Save it, Michael. We'll deal with him back at the station. Calm down before anyone else gets up here." Hoyt nodded and walked toward the edge of the roof breathing hard and trying to calm down. Five other police officers and two crime scene techs came out onto the roof and took the man on down to a patrol car.

"Who was the officer?" Matt turned to look at Michael.

"Richie Chavez. He was a cop for eight years." Hoyt just dropped his head and walked toward the door.


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

Matt and Hoyt were in the observation room staring at Blackmon through the one-way glass. As he sipped his coffee, Matt watched as the man would first rock in the chair and then stare at the ceiling as if watching something crawl around. "Hoyt, this guy is on something."

"Uh huh, I've been trying figure out if it's meth or something else." He was waiting for the public defender to show up before going in to question the man.

They continued to watch. "I bet he's using bath salts." Matt turned to look at Michael. "He's not all twitchy like if he had used meth."

"I'll bet you're right." He took a sip of coffee. "How can people keep using stuff like that? I mean look at meth – battery acid, drain cleaner – what part of that don't they understand?"

"I don't know. I never did anything like that – or pot for that matter." He sat down in one of the chairs. "But I did drink. Boy Daddy sure knew the cure for that." Just as Hoyt was about to ask him what had happened, the public defender showed up.

"You stay in here." Hoyt headed into the interrogation room.

Matt's stomach rumbled and he looked at his watch. "No wonder." It was almost 2:00. As Hoyt began questioning the suspect, Matt knew it was going to be pointless. Between his spaced out behavior and the public defender's interference, he wasn't getting much. He finally gave up after an hour.

On the way back to Hoyt's office, Matt pulled out his phone and called CJ. "Hey, what are you girls up to?"

"Oh, we've been playing with fingers and toes. You know this little piggy and such."

"Definitely more fun than what I've been doing." He explained what had happened.

"I know, I saw my handsome hubby on the news – and he was looking awfully sexy in that bulletproof vest." She was glad that he had put it on – there was a point in his life where he would have rather eaten barbed wire than put one on.

"Very funny." He couldn't help but smile. "Did they get my good side?"

"Hon, every side of you is a good side." She had that tone to her voice, making Matt wish that he were with her and that they were still trying to have a baby.

"You're good for my ego, that's for sure." He grinned as Hoyt's head shot up when he heard that.

"Tell CJ hello for me. And my niece." Hoyt grinned.

"Hoyt says hello to both you and his niece."

"Hello right back at him. You be careful, okay hon?"

"I will. Love you, Babe. 'Bye."

"Love you, too. 'Bye."

Matt hung up the phone and looked at Michael, who was smiling at him. "Good for the ego, huh? Dang I wish that phone had been on speaker." The cop started laughing.

"You'd hate to be a pervert, Hoyt." Matt started laughing and flipped open the top on the box of donuts that he had brought in earlier. "Thank God." He grabbed one and declared war on it. "You know, I prefer working with CJ. She always makes sure I eat." He licked the sugar off of his fingers and Michael gave him a grossed out look.

"Go wash your hands."

"Nope, not yet." Matt grabbed another donut and it disappeared – then he went to wash his hands.

On his way back from the restroom he saw Hoyt scrambling toward the door of the office. "What happened?"

"Another one. Intersection of Olive and Fifth." He was putting on his vest as he ran out the door, Matt following. Instead of trying to catch an already busy elevator, Matt headed for the stairwell with Hoyt right behind him. He dove for the door on his truck and grabbed his vest off of the back seat and his gun and belt out of the console. Hoyt was waiting for him with the car running. Matt put the light on the dash board and Michael hit the siren before they were even out of the garage.

As they got near the intersection, Matt was looking up at the tops of the sky scrapers. "Hoyt, up there on top of the American Bank Tower – I just saw something flash!" Hoyt bypassed the intersection and shot on past to the bank. After running the car up on the sidewalk, both men bailed out of the car and hit the front doors of the bank running. Security guards came running after the pair and Hoyt flashed his badge and grabbed one of the guards as they got on one of the elevators. He told the guard what was going on and instructed him to radio the rest of the guards and have them seal off all exits from the building immediately.

When they reached the roof access, Matt told the guard to stay with the elevator and he and Hoyt went out on the roof. Just like earlier in the day, they split up and headed in opposite directions. Matt spotted the shooter first. He was taking aim on someone and Matt got about fifty feet from him and yelled out, "DROP IT!"

The shooter turned and fired at Matt, who dropped down on the roof and opened fire at him, rolling to his left side as he did. He managed to hit the man in the leg. Hoyt was looking around one of the massive roof vents. "LAPD! DROP THE GUN NOW!"

The man made it to the steps leading up to the helipad and started up them, limping badly. Matt scrambled to get under the edge of the helipad as did Hoyt on the opposite side. "YOU DON'T HAVE ANYWHERE ELSE TO GO! COME ON DOWN WITH YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!" Matt looked around the concrete pillar and could see Hoyt on the other side.

"YOU HEARD THE MAN! COME ON DOWN!" He looked over at Matt and shook his head. Pulling out his phone, Michael called for a helicopter to help them with the suspect. When he finished his call he yelled up at the shooter. "THERE'S A POLICE CHOPPER ON THE WAY. THROW DOWN YOUR WEAPON AND COME DOWN WITH YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR! THAT'S THE ONLY WAY YOU'LL GET OUT OF HERE ALIVE!"

There was still no response. Matt eased toward the back of the helipad and climbed up on some pipes so that he could peek over the edge to get a look at the shooter. Bleeding badly from the leg wound, the man was in the center of the helipad. He was still facing the steps at the front. Carefully, Matt climbed up and crept across the open space, sneaking up behind the shooter. Just as he was about three feet away, the man sensed that he was no longer alone and started to turn, bringing the gun with him.

"Don't do it! Drop it! You know you can't fire before I can." Matt was almost on top of him.

The man began sobbing. "I won't live inside a prison for five minutes. You might as well go on and shoot me."

"I don't want to do that. Just put the rifle down. Come on. Put it down." Matt was doing his best to sound calm, which was hard to do with his heart pounding the way it was.

The shooter pointed the rifle at his own head and pulled the trigger as Matt dove down flat on the helipad. He looked up to find the man lying flat on his back with half of the back of his head blown off. "Hoyt, it's over." The police detective came up the steps, his weapon still trained on the shooter until he got a good look at him.

"Oh my God – that's Paul Richter." He holstered his weapon and stood there in shock. "I can't believe – why in the hell would he do something like this?" He walked closer and then turned away, looking as though he were going to throw up.

Matt holstered his gun and walked carefully over to Hoyt. "Why do I know that name?"

Hoyt knelt down and put his head in his hands. "He was on the force. His Guard unit got called up to go to Afghanistan and he went. When he got back, he was having some problems – emotional problems. They wouldn't let him back on the force until he was cleared by a shrink. He used to be on the SWAT team."


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

Two days later, Matt found himself standing next to Anne Hoyt at the funeral of Chris Simpson. He looked across at Michael Hoyt who was in full dress uniform. As the flag from Simpson's casket was folded and brought to his mother and father, the honor guard fired a salute to the fallen officer. No matter how many of these funerals he had been to, Matt always had a haunted feeling, wondering when he was going to be the recipient.

After the service, while Hoyt was talking to Chris Simpson's parents, Matt walked Anne Hoyt to the car. As they stood there waiting for Michael, she looked at Matt. "You know, I remember when Michael first got transferred in to the precinct. Every night he would come home ranting and raving. "If I hear one more mention of that PI's name I think I'll shoot whoever says it."" She smiled up at him as he grinned. "But you know what? He doesn't say that anymore."

"Well, I'm certainly glad to hear that." He looked across the gravestones in the cemetery towards the gravesite where the family was reluctant to leave.

"He is so relieved that you came back to work." Anne was watching as her husband spoke with some other officers headed back toward the car. "And I am, too. I know that when he's working with you, he'll be safe."

Matt shook his head. "I can't guarantee that, Anne. You know that. Look at what happened to Vince." He still carried a lot of guilt about what had happened on the day that Vince Novelli had been shot in the line of duty while Matt was with him. Although he had lived and was now happily running a restaurant in Hawaii, Matt still felt like he should have been the one to be shot.

"Nonsense. Vince told me that if it wasn't for you he wouldn't be alive today." She patted Matt's arm. "Thanks for watching over Michael for me."

"You're not over here flirting with my wife are you, PI?" Hoyt had made it back to the car.

"No we're just talking about you – and your fondness for donuts." Matt gave Anne a wink. The comment had the intended effect: Hoyt started on one of his tirades as Matt opened the door for Anne. He winked at her again and then wandered over to his truck and climbed in, all the while hearing Hoyt fuss at him.


End file.
